Hydroponic Nutrients - Earth Juice

by Jen
(Colorado)

We are doing a hydroponic vegetable system, and we have recently switched from Ionics fertilizer to Earth Juice fertilizer, and we are having a horrible time getting our plants to grow. They act over fertilized, and we flush but it doesn't seem to help a lot! We have also changed our lightning system- could any of this be the problem? We are having problems finding good info on Earth Juice, even at their site.

Answer: Jen- Earth Juice is all organic, so many of the nutrients may not actually register when you measure your nutrient solution strength with an EC meter or TDS meter. You will definitely want to start on the low side and work your way up. Once fertilizer burn happens from over-fertilization, you will have a terrible time trying to get anything to grow properly....flushing will not help speed up recover (it will only prevent further damage). If the damage was significant, it could take several weeks for them to recover. If the damage was severe, they may not recover!

Another thing with Earth Juice is the pH....it needs a LOT of adjustment and maintenance. Be sure to check and adjust your nutrient strength and pH at least once a day. I have more detailed information on maintaining your nutrient solution properly on my how to grow hydro page, in case you are interested.

In general, your plant growth problems are probably not associated with the changing of your grow light. This is assuming that your plants are receiving approximately the same amount of light as they were before. With less light your plants will require slightly less fertilizer, and with more light your plants will use slightly more fertilizer, but the difference should not be big enough to cause plant growth problems like you are having. Your problem is almost certainly over-fertilization or pH related.

Lastly, make sure you are using the complete fertilizer line. In hydroponics, the plants rely on you to provide them with ALL of the required nutrients in the water. If you are using the fertilizer in any non-standard way, it is possible your plants are not growing properly because of a nutrient deficiency. If it is any consolation, I myself had the same problem many years ago when I switched from B.C. Nutrients to Earth Juice for a short time. Turns out the recommended doses on the bottles were way to high for the plants I was growing, and at the time I did not realize that some organic nutrients do not show up on a TDS meter (which only made the situation that much worse). I hope this helps you out Jen, and Happy Growing!